Sunday, October 25, 2020

World Series: Game Four

I'm not going to summarize yesterday's game -- you can read the live blog, and by now everyone knows what happened.  Instead, I want to talk about the 1975 Cincinnati Reds.

These days, of course, we remember the Big Red Machine of the 1970s as one of the greatest teams in the history of baseball.  Between 1970 and 1976 the Reds won four pennants and back-to-back World Championships.  Almost 50 years later, they are still one of the greatest teams I've ever seen.

But for most of October 1975, the situation was quite different.  In 1970, the Reds won the pennant and were flattened in five fairly easy games by the Orioles.  Two years later, the Reds returned to the World Series -- and were beaten in a seven-game thriller by Oakland.  In 1973, the Reds went back to the playoffs -- and were stunned by a not-very-good Mets team that happened to be white-hot at the time.  They were beaten by the Dodgers in 1974, but roared back in 1975 with their best team ever.  They won 108 games.  They beat the Dodgers by 20 games.  They crushed Pittsburgh to win the pennant.  And all they had to do was beat a surprising Red Sox team to capture their first world title in 35 years.

From the beginning, it was a struggle.  Luis Tiant shut them out in Game One.  The Reds fought back to win two close games, but the Tiant beat them 5-4 in Game Four.  But then things started to go their way.  They crushed Boston 6-2 in Game Five.  Five days later, after sitting through several days of rain, they finally got to Tiant, and were up 6-3 and cruising heading into the bottom of the 8th.  Surely now they had the title they had been seeking for so long.  But Rawley Eastwick gave up a three-run homer, and the Red Sox won in 12 on Carlton Fisk's home run.  The next day -- the last game of the season -- the Red Sox led 3-0 going into the sixth inning.  At that point, according to Baseball Reference, the Big Red Machine had only an 18 percent chance of victory.  If they couldn't do something pretty spectacular -- in Fenway Park, against a smart, lucky team, they were going to lose again.

Of course, they came through.  They scored two runs in the sixth, one run in the seventh, and one more in the ninth.  They shut out Boston the rest of the way.  And the finally won the 1975 Championship.

The next year they crushed everyone and didn't lose a single game in the post-season.

Here's the point:  last night's game proved that the Rays, like the 1975 Red Sox, have caught lightning in a bottle.  They are not going to get buried.  Instead, they are riding a wave that could take them all the way to the title.  If the Dodgers win this World Series, they will have to beat the Rays, not just intimidate them.

The Dodgers will also have to overcome their own history.  Like the Big Red Machine, they've lost a lot of heartbreakers:

In Game Two of the 2017 World Series, they were up 3-2 going into the 9th, and lost 7-6 in 11 innings.
In Game Four of the 2018 World Series, they were up 4-0 going into the 7th, and lost 9-6.
In Game Five of the 2019 Divisional Playoffs, they were up 3-1 going into the 8th, and lost 7-3 in 10 innings.
And last night they were up 7-6 going into the 9th, and lost 8-7 in humiliating fashion.

If they can overcome this history, and win the title, they could establish themselves as a historically great team.  They have the talent.  But they don't yet have the results.

Los Angeles and Tampa Bay are tied 2-2.

74 comments:

  1. Clayton Kershaw is pitching for the Dodgers tonight. One way or the other, tonight will play a major role in how his career is remembered.

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  2. Tyler Glasnow pitching for TB. In 11 regular season starts this year, he had a record of 5-1 with an ERA of just over 4.

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  3. Since it's Sunday, and they are designated as the home team, the Rays are wearing sky blue jerseys, white pants, and a navy hat with the Devil Ray logo. In my opinion, they should make sky blue their primary color, and they should wear the Devil Ray hat all the time -- it looks great.

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  4. The Dodgers only have two uniforms -- one for home and one for the road. But they have the best look in organized sports.

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  5. Mookie Betts, who never reached base last night, leads off the game with a double into the left field corner.

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  6. Seager follows with a single to right, and Betts dashes home. Dodgers lead 1-0.

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  7. Seager steals second, advances to third on a wild pitch, and scores on an infield single by Bellinger. Dodgers lead 2-0.

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  8. That's all for the Dodgers in the first, but they'll be happy with that start. After half an inning, it's the Dodgers 2, the Rays coming up to bat.

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  9. Here we go again. Yandy Diaz leads off with a single. If Glasnow and Kershaw are not on tonight, this could end up looking like a college game from the 1980's. Both teams' bullpens have got to be tired. When the Dodgers played the Astros in 2017, the final score of Game Five was 13-12.

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  10. Here's Kershaw v. Arozarena with a man on first and no one out. The count goes full, and then Arozarena golfs a shot down the left field line that goes just foul. He then hits a sharp grounder that quickly becomes a 6-4-3 double play. I really hope Arozarena becomes a huge star. He's one of the most charismatic baseball players I've seen in years.

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  11. Lowe pops up and the inning is over. Dodgers lead 2-0 after 1.

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  12. The Dodgers can hit home runs, too. Pederson leads off the top of the second with a solo shot into the center field bullpen, and LA leads 3-0.

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  13. Barnes walks and tries to steal second, but he does that thing where you slide past the bag, and is tagged out. That happens to the Nats all the time, and now it's happened to LA two games in a row.

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  14. Glasnow escapes with no further damage, and the Dodgers lead 3-0 after 1 1/2 innings.

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  15. Kershaw allows a leadoff bunt single (!) but escapes with no further damage. Dodgers lead 3-0 after 2.

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  16. I don't know why Kiermaier doesn't bat at the top of the order, because he is almost never out. In the bottom of the third, he singles, and scores on a one-out triple by Diaz. That makes the score 3-1, LA, and brings up Arozarena.

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  17. Kershaw has always had great star quality, and now he looks like Brad Pitt playing a washed-up baseball star trying to win one more big game. He can't fool Arozarena, who whacks a single to left to score Diaz. The Dodgers lead 3-2, and there's still only one out.

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  18. Kershaw's struggles are a disaster for the Dodgers. If he can't pitch at least six innings, you have to put TB down for about 8-9 runs in this game.

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  19. Next up is Brandon Lowe, who's already hit three homers in the series. Kershaw fools him on a pitch in the dirt and he strikes out. Arozarena is apparently thrown out trying to steal second, but he insists that he was safe and asks for a review. Arozarena also looks like a movie star. He would be the cocky slugger who's going to take down Brad Pitt, but the audience would know he's a good guy at heart. The sort of character Wesley Snipes used to play.

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  20. Arozarena loses the appeal, and the Dodgers lead TB 3-2 after three.

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  21. Meanwhile, Glasnow appears to have settled down. He retires Pederson and Barnes on deep flies to open the fourth. That brings up Betts, who needs to be great if the Dodgers are going to win this series. He already has one hit and one run tonight. This time he flies out to right, and the inning is over. Dodgers lead 3-2 after 3 1/2.

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  22. I'm fascinated by the question of how the Rays built such a great team for no money. Take Manuel Margot. He's from the Dominican Republic and the Rays got him in a trade with the Padres back in February. Now he's batting cleanup in the World Series. He leads off the fourth inning with a walk, then steals second. When the throw gets away from the second baseman, he scoots over to third.

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  23. Next up is Hunter Renfroe, from Mississippi. He was a big star at Mississippi State, and then bounced around in the Padres organization for about six years. At the end of 2019, they traded him to the Rays, and now he's batting fifth in the World Series.

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  24. Renfroe draws a walk. Runners at the corners, no one out. That brings up Joey Wendle, the third baseman. He spent years laboring in the minors for the Indians and A's. In December 2017, the A's traded him to Tampa Bay, and now he plays third base for the American League Champions. He pops out to short.

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  25. That brings up Willy Adames, from the Dominican Republic. He was in the minors in Detroit back in 2014 when the Rays picked him up. They developed him over the next few years and brought him up in 2018. Now he's their shortstop.

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  26. Kershaw fools Adames, and strikes him out on a looping outside curve. Now it's up to Kevin Kiermaier, who most Dodger fans now regard as the second-greatest player in baseball, behind Arozarena. Kiermaier is standing at the plate when MARGOT DECIDES TO STEAL HOME! He's called out, but of course that's only a prelude to the inevitable review.

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  27. So either Margot stole home to tie the game, or the inning is over, and the Rays failed to score after having men on first and third with no one out. This is a big review.

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  28. Anyway, my advice to teams is this: Don't send minor leaguers to the Rays. Find out which of your minor leaguers they want, and then don't let those guys go.

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  29. Margot is out! What a wild game. Dodgers lead 3-2 after 4.

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  30. Max Muncy looks like the guy who would be Brad Pitt's roomie -- the funny guy who's always telling him not to worry so much. He comes up now in the top of the fifth and absolutely a crushes a cannon-shot home run into the right field bleachers. It was gone the moment he hit it, and he really enjoyed watching it go out. Dodgers lead 4-2.

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  31. And that's it for the Dodgers. Glasnow makes his first mistake in awhile, and it costs him. Dodgers lead 4-2 after 4 1/2.

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  32. It turns out the Kiermaier is a lifelong Ray. They drafted him in 2013 and have kept him ever since. He is the longest tenured Ray, and is best known for his defensive skills, although you could fool me.

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  33. Next year I'm going to spend more time watching the Rays. They're a really fun club.

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  34. My plan is to move the Rays to Montreal and have them be the New Expos. Wouldn't that be great? They'd be in the same division as Toronto, and those games would be epic.

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  35. Tampa doesn't deserve a major league baseball team at all, and they certainly don't deserve one this good.

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  36. Inspired by his roomie, Brad Pitt/Kershaw gains new strength and retires the Rays 1-2-3 in the bottom of the 5th. Dodgers still lead 4-2.

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  37. With all of the other things going on this summer, I didn't watch enough baseball. I'm going to watch more next year.

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  38. The Rays are finished with Glasnow, so they turn to Aaron Loup to start the top of the sixth.

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  39. Loup retires two Dodgers and then walks Pederson. So he's gone and the Rays bring in Diego Castillo. Castillo, Loup, Ryan Thompson, and Pete Fairbanks all appeared in at least 22 games for the Rays this year, so those guys get used a lot.

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  40. Castillo gets Barnes to fly out, and the Dodgers lead 4-2 after 5 1/2.

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  41. Arozarena will lead off the bottom of the 6th for the Rays.

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  42. On the first pitch, Arozarena whacks a wicked grounder to third, where Justin Turner makes a nice backhand grab, and then bounces the ball to first for the out. In the movie, Turner's character would say something to Brad Pitt/Kershaw to break the tension.

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  43. Brandon Lowe, also swinging on the first pitch, pops up. Now at this point, the Dodgers decide to remove Kershaw and replace him with Dustin May, who has been terrible in this series. Kershaw had thrown 85 pitches, and there was no one on base, so I don't see why you wouldn't let him get the last out. And I don't see why you'd May under any conditions.

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  44. OK, let's see what happens here:

    May v. Margot (0 on, 0 out):
    Pitch one: Foul (0-1)
    Pitch two: Swinging strike (0-2)
    Pitch three: Ball outside (1-2)
    Pitch four: Foul (1-2)
    Pitch five: Foul (1-2)
    Pitch six: Ball outside (2-2)
    Pitch seven: Swinging strike and the side is retired.

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  45. On Fox, Ken Rosenthal and Tom Verducci were just killing the Dodgers' manager, Dave Roberts, for bringing in May. But May did get a strikeout to end the inning. On the other hand, the Dodgers still need nine more outs. How are they going to get them?

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  46. As for Kershaw, I said he needed to get them through the sixth inning, and he went 5 2/3 innings allowing only 2 runs on 5 hits. He calmed everything down, survived several jams, and left with the lead. That's a successful outing.

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  47. The Dodgers have the top of the order coming up in the seventh. This is a big chance for them, and they probably need to take it.

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  48. The Dodgers do not take the chance. Castillo retires them 1-2-3. LA leads 4-2 after 6 1/2.

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  49. Since the left-hander Kershaw has left the game, the Rays are changing their lineup. Austin Meadows pinch-hits for Renfroe to lead off the seventh. May, a big red-headed guy who wears number 85, strikes him out.

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  50. May gets through the 7th with no trouble, and then Ryan Sherriff retires the Dodgers in order. Great pitching on both sides. Dodgers lead 4-2 after 7 1/2.

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  51. The Dodgers leave May in to start the 8th, and Kiermaier promptly singles to left. Mound visit for the Dodgers. Tsutsugo to pinch hit for Zunino, followed by the top of the order.

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  52. Tsutsugo flies out to left, and that brings up Ji-Man Choi, pinch hitting for Diaz. Choi is left-handed, so the Dodgers go to left-hander Victor Gonzalez.

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  53. You don't usually see teams pinch-hit for the leadoff hitter, especially one who's gone 2-3 in this game. But the Rays have a system, and it seems to work.

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  54. Since Choi is left-handed, the Rays send up Mike Brosseau, a right-hander, to pinch hit for him. This is more fun than tabletop baseball!

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  55. With a 2-2 count on Brosseau, Gonzalez hurls a wild pitch that goes all the way to the backstop. Kiermaier trots down to second.

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  56. Brosseau fouls off the next pitch. And the next one. And then he walks.

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  57. I now think the Dodgers have lost the game. By rule, Gonzalez -- who is terrible -- must face at least three batters. And now he has to face Arozarena (who is right handed) and who represents the lead run. It's incredible that with all the talent at his disposal, Manager Roberts of the Dodgers has put himself in this position:

    V. Gonzalez v. Arozarena (2 on, 1 out)
    Pitch one: Arozarena FLIES OUT TO CENTER FIELD ON THE FIRST PITCH. Oh, my goodness.

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  58. But it's still not over. Now Gonzalez has to face Brandon Lowe, who has three home runs in the series, including a 3-run homer last night:

    V. Gonzalez v. Lowe (2 on, 1 out):
    Pitch one: Called strike (0-1)
    Pitch two: Lowe hits the ball off the handle of his bat -- a sinking liner into center. Bellinger comes racing in and catches the ball in mid-stride. The inning is over! Gonzalez celebrates on the mound. May celebrates in the dugout. Manager Roberts -- who literally bet his career on these two guys -- shows a clinched fist. After 8, the Dodgers lead 4-2.

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  59. Ryan Thompson will pitch the 9th for TB.

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  60. The Dodgers will send up the bottom of their order: Chris Taylor, Kiki Hernandez (who replaced Pederson), and Barnes. If any of them get on, Betts will get another at-bat.

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  61. Thompson retires the first two batters, but walks Barnes. That brings up Betts:

    Thompson v. Betts (1 on, 2 out):
    Pitch one: Ball high (1-0)
    Pitch two: Called strike (1-1)
    Pitch three: Ball outside (2-1)
    Pitch four: Called strike (2-2)
    Pitch five: Swinging strike. The Dodgers are retired. They lead 4-2 after 8 1/2.

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  62. The Dodgers are going with Blake Treinen to pitch the 9th. He'll face Margot, Meadows, and Wendle.

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  63. This is the third game in a row for Treinen. But I don't know who the Dodgers have left who's any good.

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  64. Meadows hits some very scary fouls, but strikes out on a high fastball.

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  65. Wendle hits a fly to center and is immediately disgusted with himself. Two out.

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  66. That brings up Adames, with Kiermaier on deck. If you're the Dodgers, you do not want to see Kiermaier.

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  67. Adames is completely overmatched. He strikes out and the game is over. Great pitching by Treinen. The Dodgers win 4-2, and they lead the series 3 games to 2.

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  68. Kershaw picks up his second win in the series.

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